Solon bats for National Mariculture Program; here's what it's for
A rookie solon in the 19th Congress has filed a House bill (HB) that seeks to establish a National Mariculture Program (NMP) in the Philippines as a means of bolstering food security.
Mariculture–a specialized branch of aquaculture–is the cultivation of marine organisms for food and other animal products with man-made ocean enclosures.
AGRI Party-list Rep. Wilbert Lee filed HB 5531, which directs the Department of Agriculture–Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (DA-BFAR) to establish an NMP with the primary goal of supporting food security.
“Our country is one of the world's top producers of fish and aquatic plants. Given our distinct advantage in natural resources we must exert greater effort to ensuring that we can use these amid the dangers of the climate crisis and increasing food insecurity,” Lee said in a statement Wednesday, Oct. 12.
The NMP’s mandate includes the promotion of mariculture in the Philippines, to establish mariculture parks and zones, develop sectoral infrastructure and to provide aid for farmers and fisherfolk working in the sector.
“We are among the most vulnerable countries in the world, thus our food security is at serious risk. Kung hindi natin paiigtingin ang paghahanap ng mga solusyon para mapabuti ang ating food production, mananaig ang kagutuman sa bansa (If we do not intensify the search for solutions to improve food production, our country will continue to be hungry),” Lee said.